Several SUV models received poor safety ratings Tuesday when a private organization released findings from its first-ever side-impact crash tests. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a research and communications group, issued "poor" ratings to a number of models--the Honda Element, the Toyota RAV4, the Saturn VUE, the Suzuki Vitara, the Land Rover Freelander, the Chevrolet Tracker, the Mitsubishi Outlander and the Ford Escape. When tested using side airbags, the Escape received a "good" rating.

The tests, which recreated a side-impact crash at 31 mph, studied the extent of injuries sustained by dummies in the driver's seat and left rear seat as well as the vehicle's overall susceptibility to major damage. While the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conducts similar side-impact tests, the Institute's crash tests used barriers higher off the ground, simulating a collision with a truck or other full-size SUV.